Is this the end for Jarryd Hayne?

by James Matthey

26th Jun 2018 5:12 AM

IS THE Hayne Plane about to be grounded for good?

That's the concern of former NSW hooker Michael Ennis, who has serious concerns about Jarryd Hayne's rugby league future after watching him put in a mediocre display for Fiji in its 26-14 loss to Papua New Guinea on the weekend.

With his time playing for NSW and Australia over, Hayne's representative commitments now lie with the Bati. But playing at halfback - admittedly, a position he's not familiar with - the Parramatta star failed to have any meaningful impact in a game he had every right to dominate.

As the match drifted away from Fiji, Hayne drifted out of the contest - going missing for large periods of time when he would have been expected to grab the game by the scruff of the neck.

Ennis said he's worried this season might be the last time footy fans see the two-time Dally M medallist strut his stuff on the field.

"For Jarryd, he was busy early … but as the game rolled on he just looked disinterested at times and as the scoreboard got away from them - he just had no impact on the game at all," Ennis told Fox League program Big League Wrap.

"His body language to me at times gives me a sense that he doesn't have that love for it anymore.

"It's his body language for me. I've just got concerns that he's had enough."

Jarryd Hayne struggled to make an impact.

Hayne has endured a horror homecoming to the Eels since leaving the Gold Coast at the end of last season. He's managed just six games for the blue-and-golds in a year that's been cursed by injury.

A hip complaint kept him out for a month then in his first game back he went down again. Hayne's made only two line linebreaks all year and provided just one try assist, while scoring three touchdowns of his own.

Hayne was a shadow of the man who was once the best player in the league during the back end of his stint with the Titans, who he joined after trying his hand at NFL and Rugby Sevens. Many hoped a return to the club where he started his football journey would be a catalyst to reinvigorate his career but that hasn't been the case.

Making matters worse has been the nightmare of Parramatta's 2018. Tipped as top-four finishers and genuine premiership contenders, the Eels remain rooted to the bottom of the ladder with just three wins from 16 outings.

"Since he's returned from the NFL, it (Hayne's career) has been underwhelming to say the least," Ennis said.

"His time at the Gold Coast was disastrous to be honest, and you thought the happy homecoming back to Parramatta - who showed some real hunger and resolve at the back end of last year, really started to find some metal - that adding Jarryd Hayne and Kane Evans and the likes would have sent them to the top of the tree this year and it's been underwhelming."

Will the Hayne Plane fly again?

Daily Telegraph rugby league reporter Paul Crawley said Hayne's career has taken a sad turn and his legacy is in danger, particularly if he can't find his feet in the second half of the season.

"Jarryd's career is entering dangerous territory because he's got 10 weeks left to convince Parramatta he deserves a new contract for next season," Crawley told the Big League Wrap.

"He's 30 years of age, he's a two-time Dally M Medal winner, he has all the potential in the world but if his career was to end now, would it reach the heights that it could have?"

That Hayne was so uninspiring for Fiji in the weekend's defeat is worrying because he credited playing for the Pacific Island nation in the 2008 World Cup as a turning point in his career.

Not long after being caught up in a shooting incident in Sydney's Kings Cross, Hayne starred for the Bati and the next season he led Parramatta to the grand final and won the Dally M Medal.